September records the lowest job growth rate in 2021

KEY POINTS-

-- U.S. employers added 194,000 jobs in September

-- Jobless rate fell to 4.8% from 5.2% a month ago.

The pace of job growth slid for the second month, in September, falling to its lowest in 2021. 

U.S. employers added 194,000 jobs in September, falling way below the figure of 366,000 gains posted in August and lower than the monthly average of 561,000 since January 2021.

The jobless rate fell to 4.8% from 5.2% a month earlier, falling for the third straight as many workers left the labor force. President Joe Biden celebrated a decline in the unemployment rate, despite a dismal job growth during the same month.

“Today’s report has the unemployment rate down to 4.8%, a significant improvement from when I took office and a sign that our recovery is moving forward, even in the face of a Covid pandemic,” Biden said Friday at the White House.

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The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said, “Recent employment changes are challenging to interpret, as pandemic-related staffing fluctuations in public and private education have distorted the normal seasonal hiring and lay-off patterns.”

Market analysts attributed the unexpectedly weak growth to the roadblocks in the return of employees to the workforce.

Even though the schools have reopened, addressing the employees’ concerns regarding childcare, worker shortages have persisted. Analysts believe that people are still worried about the risks of sending children back to school and also questioning the longevity of this measure.

The leisure and hospitality sectors drove the gains, even though they added only 74,000 roles. This indicates a drop in the number of Americans spending on travel and dining outdoors, amid the spread of the coronavirus delta variant.

The number of public education jobs fell, with 161,000 fewer positions across local and government education. 

Retail jobs for public and private businesses, transportation jobs, and warehousing jobs, too recorded a rise.

Wage growth picked up. The average hourly earnings for all employees rose by 19 cents to $30.85, a 0.6% month-over-month increase for an annual gain of 4.6%.

US Treasury yields initially fell following the employment report but were later higher across maturities. 

Picture Credits: AP